gut;1877284 wrote:Distrust breeds distrust, and you have a chicken/egg scenario. Most crime is committed by young males (true across every demographic), but I imagine the distrust in the older demographics often leads to "hostile witness" situations in which effective cooperation is sometimes difficult to achieve, not to mention the "wall of silence" that also exists among family/friends.
As for the "blue wall of silence", again if you believe good cops can make mistakes it makes some sense.
I agree. You do have a chicken/egg scenario. However, one side has the assumed authority and an occupational obligation to treat individual members of a community equally.
Make no mistake, I know the statistics on young males, and I work in an industry that makes decisions, often across demographic lines, based on statistics, so I even understand the relevance of them.
But their job is different from mine. It carries a level of authority with it. I can attempt persuasion, but they can (in some cases) force compliance. I can try to win over someone, but they have the legal right to coercion in certain situations.
Their job, unlike my own, is to treat the members of the community equally, even if members of the community aren't all willing to do the same. It's not a great situation, and officers who do so well should be commended for taking on such a difficult task and fulfilling it, but that is still the job.
gut;1877287 wrote:Yeah, that NRA guy who was shot in his car....that died down pretty quickly, despite reports that he was pulled over 30(?!?) times. Why did that receive so little attention from national media and politicians? Or that white woman who dialed 911 and then got shot in her bathrobe?
I'd suggest because those situations were unambiguously [bad] cops making horrible mistakes, and it's difficult to inflame with an agenda when everyone agrees on the facts.
To a degree, yes. The media circus surrounding these events don't help. Quite frankly, I think Philando Castile would have made a good face for the cause to address the problem. He was a law-abiding family man who, despite having no criminal record, was stopped 49 times in 13 years. And the reason given for stopping him this time was because they thought he looked like an armed robbery suspect based on "the width of his nose."
I think the fact that he was an NRA member with a CCW actually contributed to why he wasn't more a face of the issue, because so many who believe that the problem of police shootings needs addressed are also in the same camp who are quick to vilify the NRA and concealed carriers. Moreover, the NRA's statement came down on the same side, saying that Castile didn't deserve to be shot. So, I think a case in which many would have to begrudgingly align themselves with the NRA made it a less-than-favorable example to put on the front cover of the cause.
gut;1877289 wrote:The point is, if you want to be taken seriously and open to productive dialogue....if you going to make someone a "martyr" to rally around, choose BETTER victims than Martin and Brown for your martyrs. Again, perfect examples of the sheeple being manipulated and enraged by people with an agenda.
Ultimately, I don't even really like the idea of a martyr, but I understand that these sorts of things are so often won with emotions and not reason. Of course, I agree with your statement. IF you must use a martyr, you should probably make it one that functions well as one for the specific cause.
